New Game Plus Sucker!
by SignlessAcolyte
Summary: The Phantom Thieves lost. The game had been rigged from the start. The next move was obvious. Reset the game, and slide a Joker into the deck. Redo fic! Joker/Harem
1. chapter 1

The game had been rigged from the start. Joker understood this as Yaldabaoth laid wasted to his team, breaking down the Phantom Thieves until they had nothing left. Everything they had tried, the God of Control had had an answer for. And in this moment he knew.

They couldn't win. It was impossible. The god had never once left this up to chance. And now… now the God had killed his friends.

Oracle…. Oracle had been killed in the first minutes of the fight. There was nothing left of her. Just a scrap of her helmet that had evaded vaporization. That's where it had all started to go downhill. Without the brilliant young hacker… the gorgeous young redhead… they were screwed. They had done their best. He had truly come into his own as a leader, barking orders but… all for naught.

Fox had been the next to fall, taking a blow that would have killed Joker. They all fell one by one, taking blows for him that he could never forgive himself for. The pure faith and devotion in their eyes as they took blows that were meant for him…. He would never be able to get rid of this agony.

Then had been Panther…. She gave him a scared desperate loving look at him before she had been sliced to pieces. Next was Skull, tears in his eyes and full of rage as he pushed Joker out of the way.

"Get this fucker Jo-!"

The flat of the blade had struck him in the jaw, ripping it off and twisting his neck with a sickening crunch. Another friend dead. Another person he couldn't save. What USE was He? He was pathetic.

Queen had tried to bring them back to the present, in the fight, and had clasped his face between her hands, sobbing at the loss of her friends, but still trying to keep him going as Noir and Mona battered the Gods Arms.

He had only just barely begun to respond when Queens eyes widened behind the mask and she pushed him away. Blood spattered his face and coat as he began to hyperventilate. They were all dying. He COULDN'T STOP THIS THING.

…. But he could go out swinging. With a snarl, he Summoned Arsene to his side.

 **"We will lose this battle. You know this**."

That didn't matter. Everything was already going to hell. It was only him, noir and Mona left.

" **So you choose to fight, even when death and failure are inescapable? Heh…. Truly we are the same**."

Arsene didn't even need a instruction now, launching an Eiagon with a wave of his arm, as Joker rushed to rejoin Mona and Noir as they fought. They ALMOST had the damn things arms…. But then….the Bastard healed himself. All that effort. Most of his team dead…. And Yaldabaoth had healed himself like it was nothing.

Noirs eyes filled with tears as she looked over to him, reaching a hand out as if to grab his, as the hand they had almost destroyed brought down a fist and crushed her into a bloody paste.

No…. No more. He had lost almost everything. Everyone he knew. All his friends except for Mona.

" ** _Foolish human. You should have taken my deal. You would have been happy with your women. Your friends would be alive and the world would have loved you."_**

The damn Bastard sounded almost sympathetic. Mockingly so if anything.

" ** _Farewell Trickster. You've lost this game."_**

"... Shut up."

He was overcome with pain, rage, and sorrow. Fighting not to break down… but also… to break free.

 **"So… you've finally realized it. There is more than you thought to our power. We have the ultimate power. The power to fight gods… and WIN. It is a shame that only now…. Only now can you wield it. I cannot save your friends. But I can avenge them. Do it. Break the chains, unleash the power to rebel against the Gods themselves!!!"**

Joker snarled and gripped the chains binding Arsene, and ripped them free,unleashing the Power within.

"Come! Satanael!"

The massive Persona descended from the heavens in a show of power, bigger even than Yaldabaoth. It was at that point in time that the God of Control began to fear.

"Y ** _ou… no. You can't_**!"

" **B** e **g** o **n** e" came the words of Satanael and Joker at once as Satanael shot the false god through its faceless head.

It….. It was over. Even as the God broke down into pieces, Joker collapsed on the floor, and curled into a fetal position, slowly rocking himself as Satanael faded from view.

Mona made his way over to his only living friend, his eyes drowning in tears.

"Joker….. you did it."

He shook his head dully.

"... not quickly enough Mona. They're all dead. Not unconscious. They're fucking dead. They died to save me. They died because I WASN'T GOOD ENOUGH." He said snarling the last words, slamming his fist on the concrete next to him, shattering it. They were always so strong in the Metaverse. Too bad it didn't translate to the real world.

Morgana didn't really have an answer for him. They were all unprepared. They were… they were all thrown into this rigged game. But Joker…. Joker had gotten the worst of it. Expected to defeat the threat to the world with so little experience when Goro Akechi had been given over 2 years to work his evil.

And now all their friends were dead, including Lady Ann…..but what could they do? It's not like they could go back… in… time….

Morgana's eyes widened. If your opponent begins to cheat at the game… what do you do? You change the game. But…. Would Igor be able to do it? Would his master be able to help his best friend?

…. It likely wouldn't be simple but Akira… dammit he wasn't going to let this be it!

Akira looked up as Morgana began moving away from him.

"... Mona? What.. what are you doing?"

Morgana ran, hating the fact that he was abandoning him, but he didn't have much time. Any moment the Metaverse and Mementos would be separated and then reset. He had to get to his Master before then!

Sprinting with all the speed in his body, he made his way down to the base of the tower, and rushed past a solemn and surprised Lavenza.

The velvet room…. It was a space between dream… and reality. And in a way, this had been where he was born.

And there was his master Igor, sitting with his long nose and … uncharacteristically a frown.

"Welcome Morgana. How may I help you? I must say I am surprised you are here….I wish to extend my condolences for the loss of the friends you had made. This game did not go as it should have."

Morgana took a breath and whipped his tail to steady himself.

"master…. This game was completely unfair. He was given a third of the time to prepare himself as Akechi-san was, and he WON.the game was as such that should Shido be elected Prime Minister, that this would all come about. But the Demiurge CHEATED. It increased its influence upon the general public and made victory impossible! Shidos victory was FORCED upon him! Yaldabaoth was NEVER going to allow him to win! Joker…. Akira. He lost everything. This is no victory."

Igor sighed and nodded, pressing his hands together in contemplation.

"You are correct Morgana…. But I'm afraid there is nothing I can do. Even my substantial powers are not capable of bringing the dead back to life. "

"I know that Master…. But… what if we changed the game? Snuck in a Joker in the deck and RESET the game?"

Morgana hoped beyond hope that he could do such a thing. That it was possible. Their leader deserved this.

Igor raised a brow before frowning, closing his eyes. Intense concentration kept the purveyor of the Velvet Room from saying anything for a few moments.

"... It is possible. But my powers alone would not be able to do this. And even if I did do this… understand that this world will cease to exist. This time… will be undone. You, and I and Lavenza. We will all cease to exist in this time and Only he will be able to remember… MOST of what happened."

Morgana shrugged. He had hoped to be able to go back with Akira but… well. This was better than nothing.

"I may be the collective hope of humanity…. But there's nothing worth living for if our friends are gone."

Igor chuckled lightly.

"... oh Morgana. I wonder if perhaps you are more human than even I had ever expected you to be. Very well...come close. This will be… painful. For the both of us."

"...You must be Joking Akira-san. I already barely believe the idea that this …. Metaverse exists. But the idea that you were sent back in time? To face a being like a God? You have to understand how insane that makes you sound."

Akira's eyes were a strange mix of bleary and laser focused. But that smirk on his face. It was… almost insufferably smug.

"Oh I know. Trust me I know. But you wanted the WHOLE truth. From the beginning to the end. It just so happens that the end is actually the beginning in my story."

Sae Nijima frowned as the young man spoke to her with none of the spite or nervousness he would have expected from him. He was completely relaxed and… adapted to the drug. Either he used drugs like this in his spare time… or he knew what to expect. It disquieted her enough that she decided to listen to him.

"very well. Start from the beginning. When did you wake up and realize you were in the past then?" She said with a slightly condescending tone.

Akira chuckled and tightened his grip on one of the legs that supported the table…. Making the metal slowly bend and creak as if the metal was like play-doh. Oh yes… the rules had changed. He didn't even have to do this if he hadn't wanted to keep things…. Relatively similar. But he was a sucker for a good scheme.

"well…. That's obvious really. It was on the the train heading to Yongen-Jaya."

He said leaning back forcing himself to think to his first day for the second time.

Sooo….. I recently beat Persona 5, and I found a couple good fanfic but nothing… quite what I was looking for. For one, no legit Harem? Really? That's sad for a Poly person like me. Ah well.

So two things! One…. What are your guy's opinion on Goro Akechi? Should I make him still be a douche and a bad guy, or should I have Akira bring him over to the Dark side where there are cookies and coffee?

And secondly…. Abilities in the Metaverse for the main cast are going to be useable in the real world. Deal with it.

But yeah! This is my first chapter, gonna TRY to keep the following chapters at least 3-5k a chapter. Enjoy friends!


	2. Chapter 2

Waking in a gasp on the train to Yongen-Jaya, Akira looked around blearily. Where…. Where was he? Where were his friends? No…. That's right. His friends… they were dead. All because of him… that Bastard Y-.

He frowned as he looked around at Tokyo as it flew past him on the train line. He… couldn't remember. Why couldn't he remember? What the….

"In the past years as you know viewers, there have been more and more cases of people seemingly losing control, causing accidents, mental shutdowns, and Deaths. The cause has not been determined but the Diet has assured the nation that the problem is being investigated, and that they shall continually work toward the betterment of our great nation."

"what a load of shit. Those politicians are worthless. Not an honest one in the whole nation." came the response of a young man who was with his friends a little further up the train.

"I don't know Izuka-kun. What about Masayoshi Shido? He seems alright. For a politician anyway. I did research on him. He's pretty clean."

Akira's eyes narrowed when he heard that name. Shido…. That son of a bitch…. Wait… he looked around a lot closer at his surroundings this time. This was…. Far too familiar. Was it… no… no fucking way. He pulled out his phone and his heart jumped as he saw the date. April 9th, 20XX. Holy fuck. This… this was like some of those crazy Anime that Futaba had him watch. He had… he'd been sent back in fucking TIME!

He felt…. Well. All of the changes he had made to his demeanor, his attitude and general dexterity… he was just as he was December of…. Then. But… could he contact Arsene? Was he still a Persona user?

'Arsene? Are you there?'

A deep soft chuckle echoed in his mind.

 **'Of….. course…….** '

He frowned. Why did he sound so distant? Never mind. It didn't matter. He would figure this shit out. Maybe he needed to go to the Metaverse, recommit to his pact with Arsene.

A soft clapping in his head told him that he was on the right path.

"Yongen-Jaya….. this is Yongen-Jaya"

Came the mechanical female tone of the subway announcer, and Akira got up, getting off the train and unconsciously going EXACTLY where he needed to go. Cafe LeBlanc. Sojiro…. Futaba…. Neither could possibly remember him. If they had, his phone would have been blowing up. He would have been flooded with so many goddamned messages his phone would have burst.

So what did he do? He completely ignored the house near the end of the street. Ok he lied. He looked up at the house with such a fierce longing his chest hurt. Futaba. She was so close…. But there was no way he could go to her right now. She was a complete shut in otaku right now. If he tried talking to her, not only would she freak out and shut down, Sojiro would throw him out on his ass in a heartbeat. It was only now he understood just how heartbreaking this whole endeavor was going to be. These were his FRIENDS. His Confidants. The people he had bonded with and….in the case of a number of them, fell in love.

Hell, just a little out of the way, to the left was the Clinic where Tae Takemi lived. She was the first of the girls he got involved with. That had been a Hell of a thing, falling for the brilliant punk doctor. Even more of a thing, the Doc falling for him.

Finally turning away from the house and the Clinic he made his way down the little pathway to strange mix of French and Japanese decor that was LeBlanc. On the way he considered the craziness that was his relationship status before. He had come to Tokyo last time never having had a girlfriend. Having only had a kiss during a round of Kings Game back in his hometown, and by the end of his year, he was involved with nine… NINE beautiful women of different ages and backgrounds.

Some might call him a player, but that was the farthest thing from the truth. It had been hard work, but… all 10 of them had come to care for each other. And the unashamed love he had for each of them had managed to work out a healthy relationship.

Shelving that thought process for a while, he walked into the coffee shop where two old folk were finishing up their coffee, while listening to the news. If he remembered right.. it was about runaway cars due to mental shutdowns. Oh… nope. It was a bus. Hm… maybe his memory wasn't perfect… he would need to write down everything he could remember in his journal that he would get. And there was Sojiro in his usual get up of khakis, white button up, and striped apron. He was working on a crossword puzzle as the old customers spoke and the tabloid newscaster tried provoking fear and panic into the populace.

"oh… how frightening."

"didn't something similar happen a day ago?"

Sojiro however was invested heavily in his crossword, never really caring much for news or gossip.

But then as Akira shifted back and forth, trying to force down the desire to smile and start talking to Boss, Sojiro looked up and frowned, and he no longer felt like smiling. He had almost forgotten how… rough? Hostile? Sojiro had been in the beginning.

"oh… right…" he said placing his crossword on the counter. "they did say that was today."

The customers must have sensed the uncomfortable atmosphere, as they stood up rather quickly.

"we'll be going now. The payment's on the table."

Sojiros expression shifted quickly into pleasant customer service expression #23. Ah… the one that meant he was annoyed but still maintaining a good attitude for now. He himself had used that one at all of his part time jobs..

"thanks for coming."

As they left, Sojiro sighed.

"...Four hours for a single cup of joe."

Focusing on Akira, Sojiros eyes sharpened into a facial expression that was rather simple.

'fuck with me, and you're going to regret it.'

It had taken a long time before Sojiro finally softened up on him. In fact, it wasn't until he and the Phantom Thieves had stolen Futaba's heart that the older man had relaxed.

He understood why the man felt the need to be severe. He wanted to help him stay on the straight and narrow. Keep him out of trouble. But… he had no idea it would hurt this much to see the eyes that used to look at him with an almost fatherly love be so harsh and apathetic.

"So You're Akira?"

"yes Sakura-san. Please take care of me." He said with a small bow.

"... Uh-huh. I'm Sojiro Sakura. You'll be in my custody for the next year."

He said in a tone that suggested he had practiced this as a lecture.

"I was wondering what kind of unruly kid would show up, but you're it eh? To clear a few things up, a customer of mine knows your parents. That's all you really need to know."

Sojiro said with an air of finality.

"now, follow me." leading the way up to the Attic, Akira almost choked up in happiness seeing the room, even as cluttered and messy as it was. This was where he had found somewhere to belong. To have friends. Lovers. It was where they had hot pot. It was where he had lost his virginity.

Sojiro didn't even notice as he wasn't looking at Akira's face.

"This is your room. I'll at least give you sheets for your bed, but I'm not going to decorate it for you. You're not a guest. You're on probation."

He finally caught on that Akira was a bit too quiet. Looking over at him he raised an eyebrow and spoke gruffly.

"you look like you want to say something."

Pushing down the desire to cry in joy, he swallowed quietly and smiled genuinely at the coffee maker.

"Its perfect Sakura-san. I'm very grateful."

Sojiro blinked, not having expected thankfulness. Likely he had expected annoyance or whining. It looked like that had earned him a notch of respect, but it wasn't enough to soften him at all.

"it'll be up to you to clean the rest. I'll be leaving after i lock up each day. You'll be alone at night, but don't do anything stupid. I'll throw you out if you cause any trouble."

Akira nodded.

"now then… I got the gist of your situation. You poked your nose into something that didn't concern you, the man got injured, and he sued you. That's what you get for getting involved in an adult matter. You did injure him yeah?"

Ok now that… that he couldn't let pass.

"with all due respect Sakura-san, I did nothing but pull him away. He was drunk and lost his balance, hitting his head."

Sojiro raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"... sure kid. Now, since you were convicted, you got expelled, and the courts ordered you leave your hometown. Your parents approved this. You brought shame to them, and they got rid of you for a year."

He was right about that at least. His parents had never cared. Marrying for business purposes, they had a child on schedule, and demanded that he become a successful businessman to support them in their old age.

When he had protected that woman from being raped or assaulted and gotten arrested he had argued with his mother and father for the first time.

' _What was I supposed to do?! Just leave her to her fate? To be violated and raped?'_

His mother's response had shaken him to his core and destroyed his trust in adults. Even now, he only trusted his Confidants.

' _Yes you failure of a child! Better that than the shame and dishonor you have placed upon us! I should have never given birth to you!'_

….. he stopped arguing after that. If his own mother couldn't see the injustice and righteousness of his action, who would?

"It's best if you keep your mouth shut about anything to do with that while you're here. I'm in the restaurant business, and I don't want your past to affect my business. Behave yourself for the year, and if nothing happens, your probation will be lifted. " Sojiro said, continuing his lecture.

"a whole year…" Akira said quietly. A whole year to do everything RIGHT. To get stronger than he ever had.

Sojiro continued his voice harsh.

"cause any trouble, and you'll be sent straight to juvenile hall." Sojiro let that sit in the air for a moment, before continuing.

"we'll go to Shujin tomorrow. It's rare a School will take anyone with your reputation. So you had better be on your best behavior. " Sojiro sighed. "what a waste of my Sunday.

Akira bowed slightly again, concealing the hurt that infused his heart as he heard that.

"thank you Sakura san."

Sojiro waved it off and replied. "just call me Boss. Your luggage is over there."

Sojiro walked away, not even saying any form of farewell.

Akira sighed. Well… it was only day one. Alright…. Time to clean his attic again. …. Dammit.

He always was pretty good with his cleaning despite what Sadayo liked to say, but that didn't mean he liked it. At least his shoulders didn't ache like last time from all the dusting….. that was actually kind of odd. Why wasn't he feeling winded at all? He hadn't gained any kind of conditioning yet.

Hm… a topic for another time.

Once he was mostly done, he sighed In satisfaction. That's enough for one day.

"hmm… guess I've been cleaning a while."

He mused to himself.

He could hear Sojiro making his way up the stairs from the dull thuds of shoes hitting the ground.

"What the heck? I heard you Making noise up here but I hadn't expected you to actually clean up."

Sojiro inspected everything, taking into consideration that a few things had not been moved but it made sense. There was a LOT here.

"actually it doesn't look too bad. I'm impressed. Keep it up. I don't want this place becoming a sty. Now, go on and get to bed. We have to go to the school bright and early tomorrow. And I have to close the shop. I'm not going to take care of you if you get sick because you ignored common sense and stayed up too late."

He said sternly once more.

Akira nodded and made his way to his bed, yawning and changing his clothes.

…. A whole new year. A whole new opportunity to make things different…. He could do this. He WOULD do this.

"... this world is ours for the taking. We will do better. I WILL save them."

That was a fucking promise.

Hey there everyone! I've gotta say, I LOVE all the love you guys have been giving me. Over 30 follows and like.. 7 reviews? That's freaking amazing. I'm so happy you guys like the prospect of my story.

So first off, I appreciate all the reviews, especially the critiques. My favorite one has to be the one that calls Satanael and Yaldabaoth, Swagtanael and Yaldabitch. I busted out laughing with that.

In answer to why he was able to summon Swagtanael (snorts) I'm just gonna say that the power of the human spirit, mixed with unfathomable amounts of rage and grief from losing his friends and lovers made him use almost all of his life force energy to summon that form of Satanael.

If you don't like that answer? Sorry. But it's what I like.

So here's the deal guys. Im writing this on my phone, doing my best to keep the grammar, formatting and everything alright. But… well. I'm not that great at it at the best of times. So I understand your problems, but what it comes down to is this.

I can post semi-regularly with as best as I can do with my phone… or you guys are gonna have to wait possibly MONTHS before I update again when I get my laptop fixed.

As for the other things like Akechis eventual fate? Hm. Gonna keep that under my lid for now. Just not sure what to do.

As to when Akechi started to see the Metaverse? The max I think that can be suggested is 3 years seeing as how Shido and Akechi discuss the fact that Akechi approached Shido 2 and a half years ago.

I've read NOTHING about Akechi having had access way before that. That's not me saying "you're wrong", it's just me saying I've never seen ANYTHING to suggest that.

Also as to the idea of him adding Justine and Caroline… thats…. A bit much. For me at least. Regardless of their actual age, (Which isn't disclosed) they look about… 10? 11?

That's a whole other kind of story. No judgements from me, just you'll have to look elsewhere.

Ok! That's it for now, I don't like author notes that make the chapter too longer.

Until next time!


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